


Sungmin's First Encounter With the Devil

by Sung_gi



Series: Four Worlds And the Devil [2]
Category: Super Junior
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-11
Updated: 2014-03-11
Packaged: 2018-01-15 08:52:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,068
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1298932
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sung_gi/pseuds/Sung_gi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Seeing New York, Paris and London was nice. Donghae had enjoyed his time with Hyukjae, who had spoiled him the best he could. But now they were back in Seoul and Donghae had wanted to see Sungmin again.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sungmin's First Encounter With the Devil

**Author's Note:**

> I hope the style isn't all too confusing... Whenever you see these lines --- the POV changes. First it's Donghae's POV and then Sungmin's.

“Sungmin-ah, I want you to tell me something.” I told him quietly, trying not to wake Hyukjae up. He had fallen asleep right next to me on the couch in the middle of a movie we had been watching together. My best friend looked up from the book he was reading, silently telling me to continue. “How did you go to their world?”

“I met the Devil, Hyukjae’s father. He took me there.” Sungmin answered and turned his eyes back to the book. But I wasn’t satisfied with that. I wanted to know why he went there. And what was his connection to Hyukjae. And who was this Ryeowook nobody wanted to talk about?

“Why?” I asked.

“You mean, why did he take me there?” I nodded. Sungmin smiled faintly. He put the book mark on the page he was reading and closed the book. “Should we let him sleep? It’s a rather long story.” 

“Alright.” I said happily before carefully standing up. I gently pushed Hyukjae’s head up so he was resting against the back of the couch. He wouldn’t be happy to wake up with a sore neck. We then left him there in the living room and went to our bedroom. I closed the door silently behind myself and turned to see Sungmin already sitting on the bed.

“Sit down. And don’t fall asleep. I’m not kidding when I say the story is going to take a while.” I laughed at him and jumped on the bed. He scolded me playfully for making the bed creak. “Although you’re still skinny, the bed might break under us if you keep doing that.”

“You think it’ll break just because I jumped on it?” I asked, faking to be shocked. “I think it’s practically impossible since me and Hyuk have been–“

“You definitely don’t have to tell me that!” Sungmin cut me off and raised his hands over his ears. I giggled and told him to begin with his story.

“Alright. I think I should tell you about Ryeowook first.” My face lit up. Finally! “He’s the reason why everything happened. I was in the hospital with him when I met the Devil. Ryeowook was dying, you see…”

\---

It was the first time I really cried over my best friend. The lithe boy was lying under a white blanket with wires attached to his body and a respiration apparatus was jutting out of his throat. His family had already left. They were devastated and couldn’t stand watching their son dying.

I, on the other hand, insisted to stay. I wouldn’t leave Ryeowook’s side now. I had promised the other to stay by his side, no matter what happened.

And I wouldn’t break that promise.

The doctor had explained Ryeowook’s parents the situation of their son. His vision still worked, but his body was otherwise completely immobile. And he would never recover. It would be only a matter of days before his heart would stop beating.

I shuddered at the thought of hearing the long high-pitched sound of the electrocardiograph. I knew it was inevitable, but there was really no way I could be prepared to hear it.

Sitting outside the room, looking through the window at my best friend, I thought of my own life. I was 15 now, Ryeowook only 14. And dying, after which I would be alone. We had been friends as long as I could remember. 

 

I must’ve fallen asleep at one point as I suddenly jerked my head up, wincing at the pain on the back of my neck. The first thing I did was to check on Ryeowook. I entered the room only to sigh as I heard the peeping go on a regular phase. Ryeowook’s eyes were closed and he was breathing slowly, his chest rising only barely – it was hard to see if one didn’t concentrate only on it.

I walked over to his friend and touched his hand although I knew the other wouldn’t return to my touch. But I clung to the hope of Ryeowook still being able to feel my hand on his. I sat down on the chair just a feet away from the bed and let the peeping sound lull me back to sleep.

 

“Poor boy.” My head shoot up at hearing someone talk in the room. The voice didn’t belong to anyone I knew. And I had become ridiculously protective over my best friend. I found myself staring at a tall man, clearly over 50, wearing old-fashioned black cloak, standing right next to Ryeowook’s bed on the opposite side of where I sat. I was dumbfounded to see the man caress Ryeowook’s cheek and didn’t really know how I should react.

“Don’t be afraid of death, my son.” The man spoke.

“Son?” I exclaimed and stood up from my chair. The man jumped and turned to see me standing now right next to the bed. I was furious because of what the old man said, whereas the old man seemed to be trying to figure out just what was going on.

“Excuse me?” The man asked. Everything in him screamed of how stunned he was. And I didn’t find any particular reason for his reaction.

I frowned. “You just called him your son.” I stated while observing him. Beside his awful fashion-sense – or the complete lack of it – there was absolutely nothing that could tell me anything about this man. And it made me nervous.

“You can see me?” 

“What?” I asked. Okay, now it was me who was absolutely confused.

“You’re not supposed to see me.” The man spoke, still looking stunned beyond everything. My body was immobile as the man slowly rounded the bed and approached me. “You really do see me…” He was standing right before me now. I stared hard at him, my eyes were just mare slits. But then he reached his hand out to touch my cheek and I panicked. 

“Don’t–“ I snarled and slapped his hand away. “–touch me!” I wanted to back away but something kept my feet planted on the floor. Why was this man here anyway? I really tried to move my legs but nothing happened and my mind began racing. It was like the connection between my brain and legs had been cut off.

“My, my… I’ve never met a human who could see me.” He said and reached his hand towards my face again. I tried to hit it away again, but my hands didn’t move anymore! My eyes moved frantically between his fingers and his face. I tried to flinch away from his touch but couldn’t. The touch felt disgusting.

“Who are you?” I asked, relieved to know I could still speak.

“I should ask you the same thing.” The man said with a dangerous smile. His hand was still touching my face, his thumb was moving against my cheek. I wanted him to let me go. I wanted to run. And I wanted to take Ryeowook with me. I wouldn’t leave him with this man!

“Are you related to this boy?” The man asked and finally turned his face away from me. But seeing him look at Ryeowook didn’t really ease my nerves.

“Friend.” I corrected him. I didn’t know why I spoke to him. It felt like my mind and body did as he wanted rather than what I wanted. 

“A close one, I see.” He said and turned back to me. “But I do not understand how or why you’re able to see me.” 

“Why wouldn’t I see you?” I snarled at him. I would’ve wanted to insult him, tell him was in a need of help if he seriously thought he was invisible or something, but I couldn’t. 

“I don’t need any help, thank you for your concern.” The man said. My eyes widened. Had I spoken aloud? “No, you didn’t say anything.” 

“What the hell?!” I exclaimed and suddenly felt my body move against my will. Soon I found myself sitting on the chair where I had been sitting on just a moment ago. The man was right there, in front of my eyes, leaning his bodyweight on the arm rests of the chair. His face was mere inches away from mine. I couldn’t breathe nor could I tear my eyes away from his. 

I swear they flashed bright orange.

“Who are you?” I gasped silently. 

“You’re going to have to figure it out yourself.” The man whispered into my ear. He moved his other hand to my neck. Horror clouded my mind as I felt his strong fingers enclose around my neck, putting pressure on my throat. 

My vision begun to swing as he pressed against my windpipe. And suddenly I felt my stomach twist. I wanted to throw up, I really did. But I couldn’t.

‘This is it.’ I thought. ‘I’m going to die.’

One single tear rolled down from the corner of my eye before I blacked out.

 

Once I woke up again, I felt weak – much weaker than I had ever felt. The whole place was dark. I couldn’t see a thing. I moaned as I tried to sit up from where I was lying. My head was aching, a dull pain on the back of my head.

“It was time for you to wake up already.” I froze on my place at hearing the voice. I recognized it easily to be the voice of the man that had been there at the hospital.

“Where am I?” I asked out of reflex. “Where’s Ryeowook?” 

“He’s going to be with us soon. But until then there are things you want to discuss with me.” His voice came from somewhere close. I kept still although my mind was screaming at me to find a way out of the situation. But without being able to see anything, how could I find my way out?

“I will not turn on the lights.” The man spoke. His voice was getting closer and closer to me. 

“What do you want?” I asked.

“The question is, what do you want?” Shivers went through me. His voice was just a whisper and he blew hot air into my ear. I felt him move and suddenly I found myself staring into bright orange eyes right before mine. 

“I-I don’t understand.” I stuttered, feeling embarrassed by the proximity of the man. The whole situation was horrible. 

“Your best friend is dying. You’re going to lose him soon.” The man spoke. I swallowed. 

“What do you want from Ryeowook?” I asked.

“I want nothing from him.” The man said. I could practically hear him shrug. “I’m not interested in him. But you on the other hand… You’re the first human who has seen me.” All I could do was stare at his glowing eyes. “You still haven’t realized who I am, have you?” He asked mockingly. “I’m the one you humans call the Devil.”

“What do you think I am? A stupid kid?” I was surprised to hear my voice. I was absolutely furious. “Those things do not exist. You’re a maniac who almost killed me and then kidnapped me! You’re going to be in deep shit when the police find you!”

The man laughed, his laughter filling the room. I snapped my mouth shut when he stopped abruptly and a sharp pain spread on my cheek. He had hit me, with open palm, right across my face. My hand automatically reached up to sooth the pain.

“You say I’m not real, huh?” He seemed to be considering my words. “What should I do to make you believe me?”

Suddenly bright lights lit up the room. I had to close my eyes at the brightness, squishing them shut and hiding under the back of my hand. It took me a while to get used to the light, which I understood was coming from torches on the walls. The room we were in was small, about the same size as my own bedroom. The walls were made out of black stones, there were no windows, and the only piece of furniture in the room was the cold and hard bed I was sitting on. 

The lights didn’t really impress me as I had seen that trick many times on the TV, but the next thing the man did had a major impact on me. When I finally focused my attention on him, he took a step to the side and my mouth fell all open.

Ryeowook was standing there, right next to the man. The old man placed his hand on Ryeowook’s slim shoulder, pulling my best friend closer to himself. Anger flared up in me as I cast a deadly glare in the direction of the man. 

“Get your dirty hands off him.” I spat at him. But I was surprised to hear Ryeowook answer me.

“Hyung, don’t anger him.” He said with a weak voice. I stared at him with wide eyes. He smiled at me but I was just too confused now. How was he here? And how could he be standing there? The last time I saw him, he was lying on the hospital bed, ready to die.

“Impressive, isn’t it?” The man asked with a victorious smile on his face. Ryeowook didn’t pay much attention on him, but asked for a permission to come closer to me. The man nodded and released his hold on Ryeowook’s shoulder. 

Ryeowook took the few needed steps to me and immediately wrapped his thin arms around me. I returned the hug, clinging on him tightly. 

“Hyung, I won’t be here for long.” Ryeowook whispered into my ear. Tears threatened to escape my eyes but I willed myself to keep my feelings under control. I expected Ryeowook to pull away when he loosened his grip on me but instead he moved to rest his forehead against mine. “I will be waiting for you, hyung.”

“Wook, I–“ 

“Please, don’t. I want you to be happy and live your life. This path was chosen for me, I cannot change it.” 

“Kim Ryeowook, it is time.” The man spoke silently. Words cannot describe how much I hated him for breaking us apart. Ryeowook stood up and backed away from me until he was standing next to the man again. 

“Sungmin-hyung, I love you. Don’t give up.” He said and flashed me the smile I had always loved so much… and then he vanished into the air. I cried out his name as his body slipped away until I couldn’t see him anymore. The tears finally fell from my eyes but I didn’t care. I had the right to show my weakness. I understood I would never see him again.

The man turned and began to walk towards the wall opposite to the bed. He placed his hand against one of the stones and suddenly the wall moved. 

“Wait!” I suddenly said. He froze on his place.

“No, Sungmin.” He said immediately. I wiped my tears away and stood up. 

“A bargain.” I don’t know where I got the courage to stand there, but I had made up my mind. He turned to look at me and I knew there was no backing away anymore. Not that I would’ve, anyway. “My life for his.” 

“I already told you. No.” 

“Why not? You won’t lose anything. It’s a fair trade.” 

“No.”

“Why not?” I flinched at the look I received from him.

“Because I cannot bring him back to life just like that. And taking your life instead of his is not a fair trade.”

“What do you want then?” 

“What are you willing to give me. I do not want your life. I want something more.”

“Tell me!” I cried out, falling on my knees. “Tell me what you need and I’ll give it to you.” 

The man scoffed. “You cannot give me what I need.” And with that he left the room, leaving me alone. The wall slid back on its place right after him.

I stayed on the floor, crying my eyes out, wishing for a miracle to happen. Only later, after I had somehow composed myself, did I come to think of the situation I was in. 

The old man, who really seemed to be the Devil himself, kept me as a prisoner for a reason I did not know. He had said something about me seeing him although I wasn’t supposed to. Could that be the reason he kept me there?

I had not moved from the spot and my legs had already gone numb. But I refused to move. What would I do anyway? Walk around in the room? The probability of the door being open was zero. I wasn’t stupid, I knew it already and thus didn’t even think of trying to open it.

And so I just sat there. 

I didn’t know how long I had been sitting there but I certainly knew it had been a long while when the door suddenly opened. I looked up and saw a boy, around my age, standing in the doorway. I was just about to open my mouth, ask him who the hell he was and what he wanted from me, but he raised his index finger on his lips. 

“I shouldn’t be here, so keep it quiet.” He whispered and smiled in satisfaction when I snapped my open mouth shut. He sneaked into the room and waited for the door to close. When it did, he turned to face me again.

“Who’re you?” I asked, still sitting on the floor. 

“Name’s Hyukjae.” The boy said and walked closer to me. I followed him with my eyes as he sat down on the bed instead of stopping before me. “And you are?” 

“Sungmin.” I told him. For some reason I felt rather comfortable with him. He had a nice smile, bright white teeth, flawless skin and reddish hair that fell on his face. He was maybe slightly taller than me and based on what I saw his body was well toned. He was actually rather handsome.

\---

“HEY! That’s my husband you’re talking about!” I exclaimed rather loudly only to earn a wicked grin from Sungmin. 

“But I saw him first!” He chirped, his grin only widening. I growled at him, seriously getting annoyed.

“You didn’t have anything going on between you two, did you?” 

“Don’t be ridiculous, Donghae-ah.” Sungmin was still smiling, but gave me an assuring look as I sent him a death glare. “No, we did not have anything going on. He was there only to make me feel a bit better. I was the first living human he had ever seen and thus he was curious. He asked me lots of questions and eventually I started feeling a bit easier…

\---

“You’re the first human I’ve met. A living human, I mean.” Hyukjae said while staring at the ceiling. He was now lying on his back while I had shifted so that I could lean on the side of the bed, still sitting on the floor. I couldn’t help but frown at his words.

“Have you met dead people then?”

He laughed. “Lots of them, actually.” I turned around to show him my shocked face. Boy, he must have lost his mind if he found something funny in his own words. He gave me an amused look before explaining that most of their servants were dead humans that had been brought back to life. “Even my personal butler is a dead human.”

“Servants?” I asked. I had never thought the Devil would have servants. I had already deduced that Hyukjae was his son, based on the way he spoke about things and the way he seemed to know pretty much everything. Except for the human world. He was very interested and enthusiastic to hear everything about Earth, about the way I lived, what we ate and how we managed with our everyday life.

We spoke pretty much about everything. I told him everything I knew about Earth, he told me everything about his world. We compared things and laughed at the other’s habits that we found odd. 

“I think I should get going…” Hyukjae said, still facing the ceiling. 

“Please stay…” I pleaded him, feeling pathetic. But I was the one being trapped here, now wasn’t I? 

“I can’t. I’ll be in serious trouble if my father suddenly –“ He froze and left the sentence hanging. The sound of the door opening had my body tensing up also and slowly I turned to look in the direction of the moving wall. And sure enough, the Devil himself was standing by the door. “– shows up.” Hyukjae muttered silently.

“And what do you think you’re doing here?” The Devil’s voice thundered. If there had been glass in this room, it would’ve shattered by the force of his voice. His gloving eyes were fixed on Hyukjae, who slowly sat up on the bed before standing up next to me. 

“Father, I–“ 

“You had no reason to come here.” I stared in horror as Hyukjae suddenly let out a piercing scream and fell on his fours on the floor. His face was twisted in obvious pain. He was whimpering silently through his teeth. I wanted to do something to help him, to stop whatever his father was doing to him, but I couldn’t. I hated to be unable to do anything.

After what seemed like ages, Hyukjae collapsed on the floor, hissing as he could finally breathe properly.

“Get up.” The Devil told Hyukjae, who swallowed hard. His body shook violently but he somehow managed to get back on his feet. Without looking back he walked past his father and disappeared from my sight. 

I expected the Devil to come in as he most likely had a reason to come here. But instead he moved aside and a tray flowed in. I followed it with my eyes as it descended right in front of me on the floor.

“You must be hungry.” The Devil said and as if on cue my stomach growled. I felt my cheeks burn in embarrassment, but mouthed a silent thank you. The Devil nodded and left.

\---

“Poor Hyuk.” I muttered silently as Sungmin paused his story. “He’s never told me about his father.”

“He was a cruel man.” Sungmin nodded. 

“No wonder Hyukjae ran away.” I really would’ve liked to go back to the living room and give Hyukjae a big hug. 

“But Hyukjae came back to me. I hadn’t expected to see him again after witnessing the consequences of him getting caught. I don’t know how long it took for him to return since, as you know, the time goes differently in their world…

\---

“Sungmin, are you awake?” I heard Hyukjae’s voice. I moaned silently and turned to lie on my other side so I could face him. He closed the door behind himself and came further into the room. I yawned and stretched my arms before sitting up on the bed and leaning against the cold wall.

“Why did you come back?” I asked but hurried to add another question as soon as I saw the look on his face. “What if your father finds you again?” 

“Then he’ll just torture me again and much longer. It’s going to be painful.” He grimaced as he probably pictured it in his mind. “But anyway, I do have a reason why I came.” 

“And that is?” 

“Do not make the deal with him.” He sounded almost like he was begging me to do as he said. “My father is going to suggest you a deal. If you agree, he will bring your best friend back to life. But in return he wants you.”

“I don’t understand. I already asked him to take me instead of Ryeowook. And he refused.”

“I don’t mean he’d kill you and let this Ryeowook live.” Hyukjae said sternly. “Even if he did wake Ryeowook back to life, he wouldn’t be the same person you know. And he wouldn’t be able to leave this world, ever.” I gave him a confused look, which he ignored and continued his monologue. “And in return he wants you, as in your body and soul. My father is a sick man, Sungmin. He has already lost my mother, his wife and mate, and he’s sick in his head.”

“My body and soul, you said?” 

“Yes. He sees something in you that reminds him of my mother.” He said and looked me from head to toe. “You are kinda pretty, after all.” He grinned playfully. I scolded him for being stupid but laughed anyway. He wasn’t the first one telling me I was pretty in a feminine way.

But then he became serious again. “Anyway, Sungmin, do not agree with his conditions.” 

“May I ask you something?” I asked, ignoring his last words. He frowned at me. I didn’t really wait for him to answer me though. “How would Ryeowook be different if he was brought back to life?” 

“My father cannot affect the way the person will behave and think after giving him another life. I don’t know how to explain it, but I just know there’s only a small chance of Ryeowook being the same as he used to be.” I had to turn my face away from him as he explained how his personal butler Edward had changed after he had been given his second life as a servant for the Devil. From what I understood, his personality had made a 180 degree turn.

“And another reason why I don’t want you to agree is that my father would break you. I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

“I’m already kind of a lost case, Hyukjae.” I smiled weakly. “Ryeowook was my only friend. His family was the one I could say to be mine. My parents probably don’t even know I’m missing. And if there’s even a slight chance of getting Ryeowook back, I’m willing to take it.”

“Sungmin, please. You don’t know what he would do to you. He is the Devil, after all.” He fell silent. I kept my mouth shut also as I tried to figure out what to do. So my chances were that, one, I would submit myself to the Devil and Ryeowook would be given another life but he might or might not be the same person that I knew. Or two, I would not agree with this bargain and Ryeowook would stay dead.

“What if I don’t agree with your father? What will happen to me then?” 

“I’m not sure.” Hyukjae sighed. Oh great, that just made my decision a lot easier to make. “But I’m sure it’ll be a lot better for you if you decline his offer.” I could feel him rub my shoulder, trying to comfort me as I was having an inner battle with myself. He seemed to realize I wouldn’t be able to give him an answer yet and so he withdrew his hand and stood up. “I must get going. I’m not really looking forward to getting punished again.” I nodded at him but kept my eyes nailed on the floor. “I’ll come see you again when I can.”

And with that he left the room. I tried to make myself fall asleep again, but when it didn’t seem to work I got up from the bed. Hoping that exercise would help, I did push-ups and sit-ups until my body was glistening in sweat and every muscle of my body protested against my mind. 

\---

“And eventually you did turn down the Devil’s offer.” I stated. 

“What a smart boy you are, Donghae.” Sungmin teased me. “Otherwise I wouldn’t be sitting here, telling you all this, now would I?”

“Hyung! Stop being such a prick!” I whined and earned a smack on the back of my head. I yelped and my hand flew on the spot he had hit me, trying to sooth the pain. “That wasn’t necessary.”

“At least it felt good.” He shrugged. I gave him a pout but didn’t continue arguing with him. I wanted to know more. 

“How did you get out then?” 

“Well, I guess you already know I was there much longer than what you were.” Sungmin said and rubbed his eyes. It was already late and I knew he had been working all day, but he didn’t seem to protest against my curiosity either. 

I nodded, muttering something about being aware of that. 

“I was there about two years since the Devil refused to bring me back. Hyukjae visited me every now and then, brought me treats and kept me company. He also taught me to protect my mind. He had noticed how his father tried to use my own mind against myself so I would take the deal after all…

\---

“I asked my father to take you back to your world. This world is obviously not doing you any good.” He said, once again sitting on the bed next to me. Indeed, I had become very weak. I had tried to keep my health up by doing daily exercise but the amount of push-ups I could do had decreased radically. I had also lost rather a lot of weight although I ate more than before. 

“What did he say?”

“He refused.” 

“Doesn’t surprise me.” I murmured. I was feeling tired and wanted to sleep although I had been awake only for a short while. Giving into the temptation I let my body slide and eventually I rested my head on his lap. I heard a silent gasp leaving Hyukjae’s lips and tensed, but when his hand came to pet my hair I relaxed again. The warmth coming from his body was more than welcome now that I had been trapped in this small room for who knows how long. 

“I must get you back. You cannot stay here.” He whispered. I thought I heard tears in his voice but I was too tired to open my eyes to check it. The way he slid his fingers through my messy hair was comforting and I was just about to fall asleep when he woke me up again.

“Don’t fall asleep, Sungmin.” He told me and the hand moved from my hair onto my shoulder. I wanted to protest and let out a soft groan but he was determined to keep me awake. I put all my willpower in as I forced my eyes to open. The look in his eyes was ruled by worry. 

“I’m tired.” I told him with a hoarse voice. 

Suddenly he moved my body so he could stand up. “That’s it. We’re leaving, now.” He said and forcefully tore me off the bed. I almost fell as my legs seemed to be too weak to carry my body weight. He caught me and helped me to walk to the door by supporting me. 

I almost passed out but somehow managed to stay conscious. He led me through the door into a dark corridor. I reached out my other hand as he told me the wall was right next to me. But he never let go of me as we walked in the darkness. I couldn’t see a thing but when I turned to look at his face I saw how his eyes glowed. The color of his orbs was soft orange. Almost like the color of his father’s eyes, only warmer and friendlier.

We walked for miles. At least that’s what it felt like. 

“Here, there’s a staircase right in front of us. Sit on the step while I check if it’s safe to go up.” He helped me to sit down before hopping up the stairs. I leaned my head on the wall and closed my eyes, but opened them again when Hyukjae told me he’d rip my balls off if I fell asleep.

It didn’t take long for him to come back down to me. But he wasn’t alone, I could hear another pair of feet following him and when I looked up, I saw two glowing pairs of eyes looking at me. The orange pair I already knew to belong to Hyukjae but I had never seen the green eyes before.

“This is Kibum, my brother.” Hyukjae hurried to say. I nodded and gave them both a weak smile. “Okay, let’s get you up.” 

Together they carried me up the stairs. I wanted to protest when they refused me to walk on my own. In fact, my feet never touched the steps before we were at the top. The other one of the brothers opened the door and the light coming from the other side of it blinded me. 

“Father can be here at any moment now.” Kibum told Hyukjae quietly. “He’s going to kill us when he finds out.” 

“He won’t.” Hyukjae said but he was a poor liar. Even I noticed how desperate he sounded. 

\---

“They brought me back on Earth but they were still unfamiliar with travelling between the worlds. We accidentally drifted apart. Fortunately Hyukjae and I stayed together but we lost Kibum. But unfortunately Hyukjae didn’t know how to navigate and we dropped in the middle of a desert. It took him a while to get us to Korea and to Seoul.”

“But no one saw you appear from out of nowhere, right?” I asked, looking at Sungmin with wide eyes. 

“I’m amazed how lucky we were. We finally materialized in the woods right outside Seoul. I was too weak to walk but he carried me to the main road where one kind lady pulled to the side and took me to the hospital. I spent a couple of weeks there, first in the ICU and then under close supervision before they let me out.”

“And what about the Devil? Didn’t he come to look for you?” 

“He did, actually.” Sungmin said and I could visibly see his skin go to goose bumps. “He visited me while I was still in the hospital. I don’t really remember much about that, but he did promise not to bother me again while I was still alive.”

“Oh… that sounds weird. Not what I expected.” 

“Me neither. And he did add there that he would bring me back to life if he was still alive when I died.”

“Well that sounds more like him.” I admitted and fell quiet while worrying my bottom lip between my teeth. “Just out of curiosity, do you know what happened to Hyukjae and Kibum when the Devil found out they had taken you here?”

Sungmin looked like he was ready to laugh at me. I blushed, feeling childish. “He was furious. Hyuk told me he had tortured both of them until they were bound to bed. But even their father had his weaknesses and he never took it up against them anymore. He punished them and then let the subject be. At least that’s what Hyukjae told me. He’s gotten better at lying and I can’t tell if he’s telling me the truth or not.”

“You two are noisy…” We heard Hyukjae mutter. I turned to look in the direction of his voice and smiled widely at the sight of him leaning on the doorframe with his eyes closed. 

“Sorry.” I smiled and Sungmin accompanied me. 

“Just told Donghae how we met.” 

Hyukjae cracked his eyes open to look at us sitting on the bed. “What a depressing bedtime story.” He finally said and yawned. 

Sungmin shrugged right before the yawn struck him also. “What time is it?” He muttered and fished out his phone from the pocket of his jeans. “Jesus Christ!” He exclaimed. I didn’t even need to ask to know it was late. I watched his scramble out of the bed and make his way to the door. Hyukjae didn’t even bother to move aside but made Sungmin struggle his way out of the room.

“I’ll be sleeping on the couch!” I heard Sungmin yell from the living room. Hyukjae just huffed tiredly and dragged his feet to the bed. I laughed at him, slapping his ass as he fell on the bed face first. He willed the lights to go off and practically ordered me to join him in the dream land.

I shrugged in my mind. Sungmin could find himself a pillow and make it comfortable on the couch by himself. He was a big boy after all.


End file.
